Bleached coral in the Great Barrier Reef in 2006. (AP/Ove Hoegh-Guldberg)
A few weeks ago when the floods first hit eastern Australia, I wrote about their potential impact on the Great Barrier Reef as fresh water plumes send sediment and nutrients into the waters offshore. Here’s my longer take in this week’s international editions of the magazine on why the world’s largest protected coral system is in danger — and not just from the increasingly frequent flood events hitting Queensland.